Side board-equipped disintegrating mechanism



Nov. 17, 1953 s. LEVEN SIDE BOARD-EQUIPPED DISINTEGRATING MECHANISMFiled Dec. 25, 1948 5 Sheets-Sheet l 122062220?! fiazziue/Levezz.

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"=5: Q Q ASN mm s S. LEVEN SIDE BOARD EQUIPPED DISINTEGRATING MECHANISMFiled Dec. 23, 1948 Nov. 17, 1953 3 Sheets-sheet 2 H w. 1 s

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SIDE BOARD-EQUIPPED DISINTEGRATING MECHANISM Filed Dec. 25, 1948 sShets-$heet 5 130622202: SamaeZL 1904922.

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Patented Nov. 17, 1953 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE SIDE BOARD-EQUIPPEDDISINTEGRATING MECHANISM Application December 23, 1948, Serial'No.67,023

6 Claims.

My invention relates to material disintegrating apparatus, and moreparticularly to material disintegrating apparatus having improved meansfor preventing the lateral escape from the paths of travel of thedisintegrating devices of such apparatus of the material torn loose bythem before such material reaches a position where its delivery will beassured.

Continuous miners are apparatus for the disintegration of a mineral veinand the loading out of the disintegrated material which results, as arelatively continuous process. They commonly comprise a movable base andmeans supported by the base for successively attacking, disintegrating,and loading out a series of vertical bands until a strip extending fromthe mine floor to the mine roof and for the full Width of the workingplace has been disintegrated and removed; after which another arcuatesection extending across the width of the room or entry will beattacked, disintegrated and loaded out. As a consequence of their modeof operation, which consists generally, in the case of thedisintegration of any given band, of a sumping operation, a verticalswinging operation, and (usually) a withdrawing movement, there will beformed adjacent one rib an initial vertical recess extending from floorto roof, of a depth equal to the depth which has been found mostdesirable for effective disintegrating operation and of a width, perhapson the order of two to three feet, which is determined largely by thepower of the machine and by the rate at which the material which is tornloose thereby may be handled by conveying equipment.

After the first band of material is removed adjacent one rib, there willbe a repositioning of the disintegrating mechanism of the apparatus, asumping in thereof, usually at the bottom of the next vertical strip tobe removed, an upswing thereof, and, usually, a rectilinear withdrawalthereof and this sequence will be repeated as often as the width of theface requires. It will be appreciated that duringthe second, third,fourth, etc. attacks on the seam, the forward end of the side of thedisintegrating mechanism towards the vertical recess last previouslyformed commonly has nothing to obstruct the escape of disintegratedmaterial, because the usual fixed side walls which extend along thesides of the disintegrating apparatus for the prevention of lateralescape of material do not extend, since they must not strike the face,to and along the forwardmost end of the disintegrating apparatus, andthere is accordingly a seriouspossibility of substantial discharge ontothe minefloor of the material from the side of the forward end of thedisintegrating apparatus which is not Working with solid mineral besideit. The probability of loss of disintegrated material without deliverythereof to the material handling portions of the apparatus may beconsiderably reduced if there be provided, at least as far forwardly asthe point of emergence of the bits from the face, as it were, a sideguard plate for receiving the material torn loose and guiding it alonthe forward end of the upper side of the disintegrating mechanism untilit reaches the fixed side walls mentioned. Because the disintegratinmechanism ordinarily swings upwardly, and generally at a considerableupward inclination when in its uppermost position, some shaping of theside board so that it will not project beyond the plane of the mine roofis necessary, and it is necessary also, in order that there may not beinterference with the solid mineral during the removal of the partforming the initial strip, that the side plate be movable out of itsworking position, for example, that it be made advanceable andretractable.

It is an object of my invention to provide an improved, movable sideboard arrangement for minimizing the escape from a continuous miner,

or the like, of coalor other material as material disintegration takesplace. It is another object of my invention to provide an improved,movable side board typeof apparatus for use in association with adisintegrating apparatus which shall be moved into and out of effectiveposition in a convenientmanner and suitably controlled during suchmovement's. It is a further object of my invention to provide animproved, slidable side board arrangement which shall have provision forpermitting its effective guidance of material, but which shall precludeinterference with the upswing of the disintegrating mechanism even whenthe latter is approaching its highest positions. It is still a furtherobject of the invention to provide an improved adjustable sideboardmechanism having fluid operated adjusting means. Other objects andadvantages of the invention will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawings, in which one illustrative embodiment ofthe invention is shown,

Fig. l is a plan View of a continuous miner engaged in disintegratingthe second of a series of bands extending across a face.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the forward portion of theapparatus shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a top view of a disintegrating mechanism such as is shown inFigs. 1 and 2, but on a larger scale.

Fig. 4. is a side elevational view of the dis integrating mechanismshown in Fig. 2 on a larger scale, with parts broken away, and with theside board shown in retracted position.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical sectional v ew on the transverse verticalplane of section line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary enlarged view of the forward end of thedisintegrating mechanism, showing the latter in raised position and theimproved side board construction associated therewith in forwardposition.

Fig. '7 is an enlarged vertical sectional view on the transverse planesof the section line 1-4 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary diagrammatic view somewhat similar to the lefthand end of F1g. 1, but showing the making of an initial cut.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary view forward portion of Fig. 1, showing thedisintegrating mechanism operating in the central planes of the face.

Referring to the drawings, and first to F1g. 1, a continuous miner,generally designated I, is shown operating in an entry 2. It isoperating in the entry by the successive removal of arouate verticalstrips of coal 3, Whose forward surfaces form successive faces 4, 4' andother similar faces. The disintegrating apparatus includes (see Fig. 2)a portable base 5, on which there 1s arranged a turntable mechanism 6,relat1ve to which there are reciprocable guides l which carry a slidableframe 8. For details of this mechanism attention may be had to myapplication, Serial No. 19,698, filed April 8, 1948, for ContinuousMining Apparatus. This slidable frame includes (or, better, carries) amotor 9 actuating a disintegrating mechanism IE]. The latter includes avertically swingable frame il pivoted for vertical movement about anaxis l2 and adapted to be swung vertically by hydrauhc cylinder andpiston means 13 connected by a connecting rod M to a depending arm l5carried by the disintegrating apparatus. The disintegrating apparatusprovides a series of guides l6, ll, [8, I9 and 20, pairs of whichcooperate, in the mechanism shown, in the guidance of a series of fourcirculating chains 2|, 22, 23 and 24. These circulating chains includedisintegrating element-carrying blocks 25, connected by strap links 26.Various arrangements of disintegrating elements 21 carried by the blocks25 can be employed, and in the drawings I have illustrated anarrangement which is the invention of one Harold F. Silver, and whichincludes slightly oblique block rows.

The disintegrating apparatus has associated with it side walls 30forming a trough wh1ch guides the disintegrated material back towards ahopper 3| from which the material is discharged by suitable conveyingmeans to a rearward point. These side walls are tapered at their forwardends, as shown at 32, so as not to strike the roof in the raisedpositions of the disintegrating mechanism. Necessarily, since they arenot adjustable relative to the disintegrating mechanism, they mustterminate at a point slightly more remote from the innermost point ofthe disintegrating operation than the depth of penetration of thedisintegrating mechanism. This obviously means that there must be asubstantial distance along which disintegrating elements are movingrectilinearly outwardly from the inner ends of their orbit, and alongwhich a lateral escape of disintegrated material will be possible unlesssuitable escape-prevention-means is prosimilar to the vided. To reducethis escape of material, I have provided, in the illustrative embodimentof my invention, a movablespecifically illustrated as slidable-sideboard arrangement which may now be described in more detail.

First it may be well, however, to note that the side plates 35 of theframe which guides the chains carrying the disintegrating elements arerelatively vertical (see Fig. 5) and that the side wall elements whichcooperate with them have a lower vertical portion 36 bolted to the sideplates 35, an obliquely outwardly extending portion 31 providingincreased width to accommodate the movements of the disintegratingelements and greater carrying capacity, and another vertical portion 38spaced outwardly laterally from the vertical portion 36. Thus there isformed a wider upper trough section reinforced by an angle bar as at 39and providing a relatively protected space 40 in which a feeding andretracting cylinder mechanism 4| is arranged, this being carried bypositioning plates 42 secured to the plate portions 36, 31 and 38.

In Fig. '7 the parts 35, 35', 35, 3'! and 38 again appear, and it willbe noted in this figure that a correspondingly shaped side plate orboard element 45, having portions 46 corresponding, except in verticaldimension generally to the portion 35, an oblique portion 41corresponding to the oblique portion 37, and an upper vertical portion48 corresponding to the vertical portion 38 is disposed outside the sidewall element 35'. This side board element has a horizontal top surface,as shown at 49, and a forwardly inclined surface, as shown at 50, and anose portion 5| whose forward end barely extends above the tips of thedisintegrating elements in the outward run of the latter. The side boardelement 45 is adjustable and is herein disclosed as slidably adjustableand is provided with longitudinal slots 52 and 53 for its guidance andthrough which there extend, as illustrated, bolt elements 54 with whichnuts 55 and washers 56 cooperate. These bolt elements extend through theslots 52 and 53, and the slots permit the side board element 45 to bereciprocated forwardly and rearwardly by the feeding and retractingmechanism 4|. This mechanism is herein shown as a hydraulic cylinder 57having a bore 58 in which a piston 59 is reciprocable, while a pistonrod 60 connected with the piston is connected through a reduced endportion SI and a nut 62 to a lateral extension 63 carried by the sideboard element 45. Fluid can be admitted to the cylinder 51 from anysuitable source, and under any suitable control, and accordinglydetailed description of such arrangements is unnecessary, it beingsufficient to call attention to the fact that conduits 64 and 65 leadrespectively to the rearward and forward ends of the cylinder 51 for thedelivery of hydraulic fluid under pressure to one end of that cylinderwhile permitting the venting of fluid from the other end. The sideboardelement may be provided at either or both sides of the apparatus, butwill normally be provided only at the side which will be at the rib whenthe first of the series of attacks on a band extending across the faceis to be made.

In the retracted position of the slidable side board element 45, it willbe observed that its nose 5! is outside the line of the face 4 (seeFigs. 4 and 8). Accordingly, in the retracted position of the sideboard, the rib attack on the coal can be effected with the side boardwholly withdrawn from any position where it would strike the face.

As shown in Fig. 6, however, the side board 45 can be moved forwardlyuntil the rear ends of the slots 52, 53 reach and engage the bolts 54and thus be brought to a position in which the nose 51 is about on theline of the axis about which the semi-circular forward portion of theorbital movement of the disintegrating elements 2'! about the forwardend of the disintegrating mechanism takes place (see Figs. 1, 6 and 9).Thus it will appear that the improved side board mechanism so fardescribed consists, in the illustrative embodiment thereof, of a movablypositioned, herein slidable, side board having means for supporting itfor movement, herein sliding movement, between positions wholly outsideof the face and positions materially inside the face-between positionsin which it will not interfere with the operation of the disintegratingmechanism as the latter is making an initial attack on a transverse facebut which on all subsequent attacks may extend substantially inside theface and thus reduce the escape of disintegrated material as this isdetached and outwardly directed. It will be noted that the plate is soformed as in the advanced position thereof not to interfere with theroof in the most upward position of the disintegrating apparatus as thelatter completes its upswings (see Fig. 6). It may be noted,incidentally that in the position of the disintegrating apparatus justdescribed, if it were desired to retract the side board, its motionwould be outward and downward. Therefore, there would be no interferencewith the roof during retraction. By the provision of hydraulic control,the side board can be advanced and retracted as may be necessary, and ifan obstruction is met the board will simply not move forward; and itwill be possible for the side board to be forced outward in the event anoutwardly directed force of sufficient magnitude is applied to itsforward end. The source of hydraulic fluid for its operation mayobviously be a pump such as is provided for the hydraulic operation ofthe continuous miner or a pump providing a considerably lesser pressurewill sufiice and may indeed be desirable.

While there is in this application specifically described one form whichthe invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that thisform of the same is shown for purposes of illustration, and that theinvention may be modified and embodied in various other forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination, in an apparatus for disintegrating and removingmaterial from a mineral vein in a series of vertical bands boundedlaterally by substantially parallel surfaces and at front and back byarcuate surfaces struck from different axes, by successive attacks onthe vein each including a shearing operation following a sumpingoperation, a disintegrating mechanism supported for sumping and shearingmovements and including a bar structure having vein-attacking elementsmoving thereon in orbits the forward portions of which extend within theface for a limited distance during vein disintegration, trough-formingmeans mounted on said bar structure and extending forwardly along thesides thereof but terminating short of the rearmost point thereof whichenters the face, and an element mounted on said bar structure andmovable relative to the latter to form an'e'xte'nsion of saidtrough-formingmeaiis at one side only of said bar structure, saidelement movable between positions in which no portion of it is as farforward as the rearmost point which enters the face and in which, duringdisintegration, its forward end substantially overlaps laterallyportions of said orbits which are within the working face whereby saidelement in outer position cannot foul undisintegrated solid material andwhen in its forward position diminishes the lateral escape ofdisintegrated material by extending the trough at the free side of aband undergoing disintegration.

2 Disintegrating mechanism as defined in claim 1, in which thevein-attacking elements move in similar orbits each including a curvedforward portion and a relatively straight upper, outwardly extendingportion and in which said trough-forming means mounted on the barstructure and extending forwardly along the sides thereof terminatesshort of the curved forward portion of said orbits, and in which theelement mounted on the bar structure and movable relative to the latterto form an extension of the trough-forming means at one side only or sad bar structure is movable forwardly to a position closely adjacent thecurved forward portions of said orbit and has no portion thereofoverlying the curved forward portion or the rela tively straight upper,outwardly extending portion of any of said orbits.

3 Disintegrating mechanism as defined in claim 2 in which said elementmovable to form an extension of the trough-forming means comprises arearward portion having a top edge at a like level with the top edge ofsaid troughiorming means at points adjacent to it, and has a forwardportion whose top edge inclines downwardly so that in the uppermostposition of said disintegrating mechanism the forward end of saidelement shall not project substantially above gollrgrizontal plainetangent to the curved forward ions 0 sai or thereofbits at the uppermostpoints 4 Disintegrating mechanism as defined in claim 1 in which saidelement mounted on said bar structure and movable relative to the latterto form an extension of said trough-forming means at one side only ofsaid bar structure has no portion thereof overlying the upper portion ofthe nearest one to it of said orbits and in which means is provided inthe form of cylinder and plston mechanism supplied with a fluid underpressure for advancing said element at wil from its rearward positionwhen it is in the latter.

5. In a vein disintegrating mechanism, a bar structure having extendingalong its opposite sides upwardly projecting walls cooperating with saidbar structure to form a trough, said upwardly projecting wallsterminating short of the forward end of said bar structure,disintegrating elements carried by said bar structure and supported formovements in parallel orbits in upright planes lying between saidupwardly proectmg walls, said orbits having forward portions at theforward end of said bar structure and in advance of the forward ends ofsaid upwardly pro ecting walls, an element mounted on said bar structureat one side only thereof and movable relative to the latter to form anextension of the upwardly projecting wall at its side of said barstructure, which extension lies, during the vein-disintegratingoperation, alongside but outwardly of the most adjacent orbit at aportion of the latter in which during such vein disin tegiatioii thedisintegrating elements'thereof engage solid material to bedisintegrated, and means for efiecting, during vein-disintegration, anextension as aforesaid of said element, said means arranged on the sideof said bar structure and below the top of said trough.

6. A mineral vein-attacking and disintegrating mechanism including a barstructure supported for swinging and translational movements in uprightplanes, said bar structure having spaced rearwardly from its forward endupstanding side walls forming the sides of a trough and having betweenits sides numerous material-disintegrating elements moving in orbits invertical planes extending lengthwise of said bar structure, said orbitsall having forward portions ahead of said upstanding side walls, and anelement movable to form an extension of one of said side walls andlocated wholly at that side of said bar structure at which said one ofsaid side walls is disposed, and having portions thereof projectinghigher than the uppermost portions of said orbits but laterally whollyoutside the cumulative space occupied by said orbits, said elementarranged, when extended, to enter, during one attack of thedisintegrating elements on a mineral vein the space produced by theaction of said disintegrating elements during an immediately precedingattack thereof on the vein, thereby to diminish lateral escape ofmaterial and means for advancing said element to effect its presence insaid space during vein-disintegration.

SAMUEL LEVEN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,588,563 Wilson June 15, 1926 1,871,186 Lindgren Aug. 9, 19321,939,673 Driehaus Dec. 19, 1933 2,216,177 Arentzen Oct. 1, 19402,261,160 Joy Nov. 4, 1941

